


Nine Men and a Dragon Egg

by mellifluous (TpLoz)



Category: SF9 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Devil Kang Chanhee | Chani, Gen, Humor, Kumiho Kim Inseong, roseong if you squint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-18 03:27:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28611318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TpLoz/pseuds/mellifluous
Summary: “What the hell is that?” Inseong asks, spooning yet another bite of ice cream into his mouth.The others are huddled around his kitchen table, where they usually convene when there are strange occurrences. In the middle of the table lies an egg. It’s not a huge egg, but it’s large enough that you’d need to carry it with two arms. Inseong has never seen the likes of it, and the others haven’t either if their mystified gazes say anything. Juho is the only one not staring at it, his nose stuck in one of his big tomes. With a noise of intrigue, Juho lays his eyes on the egg.“It’s a dragon egg,” he says softly as if he might disturb it.Or, SF6 find a dragon egg, Inseong doesn't like it, Chani tries to steal it, and Seokwoo is late to the party.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 8
Collections: SF9 Secret Santa Fic Exchange 2020





	Nine Men and a Dragon Egg

**Author's Note:**

  * For [peachjuho](https://archiveofourown.org/users/peachjuho/gifts).



> Dear Jae! I wish you the very best for this new year. I hope you'll find happiness, good fortune, and everything you deserve(which is a lot of good things). This fic is a gift for you (yes, you!) and I hope you like it. 
> 
> Love,  
> Your Secret Santa 💖

“What the hell is  _ that? _ ” Inseong asks, spooning yet another bite of ice cream into his mouth. 

The others are huddled around his kitchen table, where they usually convene when there are strange occurrences. In the middle of the table lies an egg. It’s not a huge egg, but it’s large enough that you’d need to carry it with two arms. Inseong has never seen the likes of it, and the others haven’t either if their mystified gazes say anything. Juho is the only one not staring at it, his nose stuck in one of his big tomes. With a noise of intrigue, Juho lays his eyes on the egg.

“It’s a dragon egg,” he says softly as if he might disturb it. 

The egg jiggles a little, causing everyone to startle before it settles back down. 

“Hm… I think it likes you, Juho.” Inseong puts down his ice cream and spoon, stalking over to the table to get a closer look. The egg glows lightly, a bright blue, and it irks Inseong. The energy coming from the thing is way too dark, as if it belongs to someone or something evil… “We should get rid of it,” he says, straightening up. The resounding ‘no’ that came from everyone else in the room was no surprise and Inseong sighs, slinking back to his study.

-

Youngbin trusts Inseong. He knows they shouldn’t keep the egg, but there’s just something about it. Something that makes Youngbin and everyone else want to protect the egg with their lives. It’s a living, breathing dragon. A small, little dragon that has yet to see life. 

Youngbin stays up that night to mind the egg. The rest of the group have scattered around the apartment to sleep for the night and he can hear Juho’s snoring from where he sits at the kitchen table. He can also hear slow, lazy footsteps in the hallway which means someone is about to join him and he imagines it to be a certain kumiho.

“You staying up?” Inseong asks from the doorway, leaning against the frame in his silk pajamas that make him look like some rich socialite. To be fair, it isn’t far from his image, although he does prefer not to associate with it. 

Youngbin hums, nodding to Inseong and looking pointedly at a chair, telling the kumiho to take a seat.

“I’m fine.”

It’s the egg. Youngbin knows it and so he asks, “What’s up with the egg? You’ve been avoiding it all day.”

Inseong scratches his ear, always trying to seem nonchalant, and gives Youngbin a bored stare. “The egg is magic; it’s controlling you. Enchanting you so you’ll protect it. I can feel it and if I step further into the kitchen, I’ll be pulled under too.”

Staring at the bright glow emanating from the egg, Youngbin sighs. A small annoyed puff of air. Of course, they’d get mixed up with that sort of thing. They all had a penchant for getting mixed up in wacky and weird situations, so this is far from surprising. However, unsatisfactory as it may be, they all—barring Inseong?—felt a need to mind the egg. “Did the egg do that itself?”

“Do what?”

“Set up the magic to enchant people.”

“I suppose not. We don’t really have enough information on dragons and their offspring to know, but perhaps…”

“Perhaps?” Youngbin looks from the egg to Inseong, raising an eyebrow.

“If someone was invested in the egg and the dragon baby, then  _ they _ might have put a spell on the egg so no one would be  _ compelled _ to destroy it. In any case, we should get it to hatch as soon as possible, because if someone really would go to such lengths to protect the egg, then maybe we’ve crossed a very dangerous line,” says Inseong, voice grave and low. The egg jitters a little, as if wanting to add to the conversation.

Youngbin supposes they should research hatching the egg in the morning once everyone is awake. Maybe Juho would have some ideas seeing as he’s cared for other magical creatures in the past. 

“We’ll figure something out,” Youngbin replies, but Inseong is already leaving. His back is getting further and further away from Youngbin, his silk dressing gown swaying. 

-

The next night, the danger that Inseong spoke of stumbles into his apartment. However, unbeknownst to him, there are several highly skilled (and not-so-highly skilled) humans in the apartment that know how to kick up a fuss. 

Inseong is talking to his friend Jaehyun, who is also a kumiho, on the phone when he hears Hwiyoung and Taeyang shouting hysterically from the living room. 

“Sorry, Jaehyun. Gotta go.” He hangs up hastily, and rushes from his bedroom to see what the commotion is.

Juho, Jaeyoon, and Youngbin are standing in the hallway. They don’t seem particularly worried about whatever is happening in the living room, but the shouts are still coming from the room. Inseong walks into the room, walking past those standing by in the hallway, and halts. 

“ _ Chanhee? _ ” 

“ _ Inseong? _ ” 

Inseong stares at Chanhee who’s wrapped up in blankets and stray garments of clothing that are always left lying around here. He looks very much like a devil-shaped burrito on the cream-coloured couch which Inseong imagines is infuriating him. He isn’t one to be trapped easily. Sanghyuk, Hwiyoung, and Taeyang stand over him, looking proud of their handy work, yet peeved about the guy breaking and entering.

“Why are you here, Chanhee? Do you know this is my apartment?” Inseong asks, leaning down in front of him, hands on his own knees. 

“I’m not telling you,” scoffs Chanhee, looking away from Inseong’s imploring eyes and instead focussing his gaze on a no-doubt interesting spot on the wall. 

Sanghyuk speaks up, obviously just as confused as the rest of them as to how they know each other. “How do you…?” He stops, changing his question. “How on earth does a kumiho become acquainted with a  _ whatever _ this guy is?”

Inseong debates with himself. What should he tell them? Should he embarrass Chanhee further? He doesn’t think the devil would like that. Chanhee’s eyes dart about the room showing that, yeah, he wouldn’t want that and he’s too proud to ask Inseong not to reveal it.

“That’s besides the point, Sanghyuk. We should find out what he wants first.” Inseong straightens up and crosses his arms across his chest. The thing is, Inseong already knows what Chanhee is here for. It’s the thing that has been dominating their lives—and Inseong’s kitchen for the past few days—and Inseong is far from shocked that Chanhee of all people is looking for the dragon egg. Although he is very grateful that it’s Chanhee who’s caught up with the egg and not some other crazy, evil magical being. Inseong’s run into his fair share of those bad guys. 

Inseong cocks an eyebrow at Chanhee, and says, “Do you want to tell them, or shall I?”

Fire burns in Chanhee’s eyes and he sneers. “Hyung, give it back to me! It’s mine!”

“Not until you tell us what you want it for.”

With a huff, flames begin to lick around Chanhee and engulf his burrito shell, destroying the Inseong’s warm blanket and the random bits of clothing. A wounded noise comes from the hallway and Jaeyoon appears beside Inseong.

“You burned my jumper!” 

Under his breath, Sanghyuk says, “It was ugly anyway…” 

“What did you say?” 

Inseong steps back, not wanting to see the two get into  _ another _ fight this week. And, as those two were arguing, he spots Chanhee edge out of the room with everyone preoccupied and make his way towards the egg. Inseong follows, unsure why he feels so duty-bound to this egg-

Unless.

Inseong stops in the hallway, his determined glare now a pitiful confused stare. He’s been enchanted by the egg? But how-? (He’s oh-so-easily forgotten how he’d walked up close to it in the kitchen the other day. Too caught up with avoiding the feelings the enchantment gave.)

With a sigh, he shakes off his confusion and goes to protect the stupid dragon egg. If he’s under the enchantment then he’d feel terrible if it got into harm’s way. 

Chanhee is cradling the egg to his chest when Inseong enters the kitchen. The light is off and so their only light is the glow of the egg. It casts a ghoulish light across Chanhee’s face, but regardless, the devil looks—dare Inseong say—soft… As if he cares for the dragon… 

Surely, he wanted the egg for nefarious reasons. That’s what Inseong had assumed in any case.

It’s a complete stab in the dark, but Inseong asks anyway, 

“Chanhee, are you lonely?”

_ Inseong remembers it like it happened yesterday. The little kid walking beside him, clearing his throat, as Inseong took his morning stroll by the river. The small, but brave voice that asked, “Can I walk with you?” Inseong, in response, had halted his steps and asked the kid, “Where are your parents? Shouldn’t you be with them?”  _

_ “I don’t have any.” _

_ Inseong nodded and continued walking along, the devil child walking with him.  _

That was how Inseong became acquainted with Chanhee, or rather, with the lonely boy that he was and possibly still is. There’s a look in his eyes—Inseong had seen it back in the living room—it made Inseong’s heart hurt. The pure vulnerability that lay there was like a wound, wide-open and painful, and as Inseong’s question registered, it appears again now in the kitchen. 

Chanhee frowns, eyebrows turning down in annoyance. “No. Why would I be? I’m a devil. Devils don’t get lonely.”

Inseong bites his lip and looks down at the egg in Chanhee’s arms. “You could have called me. I gave you my number.”

“It’s never that easy, though, is it?” Tears begin to form in Chanhee’s eyes. “You have a life full of people, of friends, already, Inseong. I-I’d just be trespassing.”

Inseong stays silent for a moment, before stepping further into the kitchen and closer to Chanhee, hovering his arms around the kid to test the waters before fully enclosing him in his arms. Or, as well as he could with the egg in the way.

“I would never even consider that, Chanhee. I told you—you will always be welcome. I used to be a bit grumpier back then though, so maybe you got mixed signals,” says Inseong while stroking Chanhee’s hair. 

“ _ A bit _ grumpier? You used to threaten everyone around you when they so much as touched your hair!” Ah. A new voice joins them. A voice that Inseong hasn’t heard for the last few days and gladly too! Seokwoo grates on his nerves, but he hasn’t figured out why yet… 

Inseong steps away from Chanhee who looks a little perplexed at the banter. He’s probably still a little shaken up by this whole thing. Inseong decides to introduce him properly once he’s finished taking Seokwoo down a peg or two. Which… 

Doesn’t happen. Obviously, they’ve been teaching Seokwoo some scathing phrases in his corporate job because that last one he threw at Inseong made him gasp in horror. It’s all in good fun though as Inseong elects to turn back to Chanhee and ignore the human tree, gaining laughter from Seokwoo. 

After a brief hug and a whispered “I missed you”, they scatter about the apartment once again. Chanhee is introduced to everyone, Seokwoo is briefed on the dragon egg and Inseong realises that they really are one big happy family, which seems to only be growing with the months.

“Hey, guys…” Taeyang calls out to them as they watch their weekly movie. 

He points to the egg where it’s wrapped up in blankets (fetched from the spare rooms) and they all gather around as the shell begins to crack…

And reveals—

“A cat!?”

**The End.**

**Author's Note:**

> (And thus, Huru was born!)
> 
> Bwahaha, I'm half-kidding <3


End file.
